• by Wayne Friedman , May 22, 2024

The first two rounds of the NBA playoffs have pulled $274.6 million in national TV advertising -- up 3% versus the same period the year before, according to estimates from EDO Ad EnGage.

In terms of traditional TV measurement of viewership over the month-long period -- April 20 through May 20 -- national TV viewing on ESPN, ABC, TNT, and truTV is collectively down 12% to 4.03 million. 

The highest-rated game so far was the Western conference second-round Game Seven, where the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the defending champion Denver Nuggets, earning 8.4 million viewers.

Game Seven of a second-round Eastern Conference game in which the Indiana Pacers beat the New York Knicks averaged 6.5 million viewers.

Total impressions over the period were down 7% to 25.5 billion (vs. 27.3 billion in the year-ago before), per EDO Ad Engage.

National TV airings of commercials are slightly higher this year-- 10,377 versus 9,260. This includes new and repeat airings on ESPN, ESPN2, and TNT.

Top brands so far include AT&T Wireless, State Farm, FanDuel, Kia Motors, and Google Pixel (on TNT); Google Pixel, Toyota Motors, Allstate Insurance, Ford Motors, and Universal Pictures (ABC) and Toyota Motors, Ford Motors, Google Pixel, Nissan, and Verizon Wireless (ESPN).